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Building
Trails
Most
people have no idea what a monumental (and expensive) task it is to construct a
4x4 track. Most obstacles have to be designed and built by hand, whilst
the natural contours of the land also need to be utilised. The basic steps are
as follows:
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select
appropriate ground, looking for alien and indigenous vegetation, topography,
water, erosion |
| perform
an EIA (Environmental Impact Assessment) study before the land is selected |
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create
the route first using bulldozers, frontloaders and tractors |
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collect
rocks to build rock obstacles |
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create
deep patches of loose sand for sand obstacles |
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create
a water crossing |
Basically
a track is situated on unarable land, and the construction process involves
clearing up the alien vegetation and making the land as attractive and natural
as possible.
I've
designed a number of tracks, and have included some pictures below to give you
an idea what it involved:
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(click
to enlarge)
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(click
to enlarge)
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There are invariably a
large number of alien trees and bushes that need to be cleared - this is
a great positive offspin from the construction of the track. This
is typically extremely manually intensive, and we ensure that ALL
indigenous vegetation is protected.
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The natural landforms
need to be used as far as possible, but with minimal impact on the
environment. Here we've used an area of erosion to build a decline
obstacle leading into a river.
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(click
to enlarge)
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(click
to enlarge)
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| In the absence
of natural landforms, the expensive but efficient way of building
obstacles is with bulldozers and tractors. Here the angles of incline /
decline have to be worked out carefully to ensure that there's enough of
a challenge for the off-road vehicles. Every obstacle has to be
personally tested and adjusted as the construction progresses. |
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Log obstacles
are often used on a track, simulating very real situations found across
Africa. It usually involves cutting down and
preparing alien trees, reinforcing a slope with the trunks, or bridging
crossings. The angle of incline / decline has to be calculated
carefully to ensure that most vehicles can clear the obstacle without
getting stuck, with the proper driving technique of course. |
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